Six
women have emerged winners of the Vlisco Women’s Month Award this year from
West and Central Africa. Winners were announced from each of the six
participating countries at the recently held Award event themed, Dare to Dream.
The Nominees went through a screening process and were elected by public vote. These
women blaze the trail in media, development and health sectors, breaking the
bounds of stereotypes and becoming inspirations for younger women.
There are a total of six votes, with one vote per country: Nigeria,
Ghana, Togo, Benin, Ivory Coast and Democratic Republic of Congo.
The award is part of the lineup of activities for the celebration
of the International Women’s Day organized by Vlisco Limited, to honour the
outstanding achievements of West and Central African women by identifying and
rewarding those who inspire others to realize their dreams during the month of
March.
Also part of the line-up of this year’s Women’s Month Campaign, is
the Vlisco Fashion Fund, which encourages aspiring fashion designers in West
and Central Africa to pitch their business plans explaining their fashion
dreams to a Vlisco Jury for a chance to win $2,500 funding and fashion training
at the Netherlands. For this category, 3 aspiring designers from this
participating received their award funds at the Women’s Month awards. Nollywood
Actress Stephanie Okereke-Linus is the Vlisco Women’s Month Ambassador.
Working Moms Africa partnered with
Vlisco in this regard and has brought you a report on those women who inspire
you to follow your dream. Read on:
Adesuwa Onyenokwe - Nigeria
Adesuwa is
the Publisher of TW magazine, a communications expert who is passionate about
women doing their utmost to uplift society. She has a BA in Dramatic Arts and
an MA in Language Arts, and was previously a Nigerian Television Authority
broadcaster.
She was
nominated for being
an outstanding publisher whose achievements and successes are the results of
her had work and determination and for her outstanding roles and performances
in media.
Her dream
for women is to see
all women attain their utmost by leveraging on all the inspiring stories of achievers
in different fields.
  |
| Aimée Abra Tenu - Togo |
Aimee is the youngest of the
winners. Born 3 December 1985 and based in Kpalimé, Director of the
Sainte Thérèse de l'Enfant Jésus (STEJ Togo) NGO; promoter of Zam-Ké,
ViViFruits and Kari-Kari products. Aimée Abra Tenu has, for the past 13 years,
dedicated herself to providing access to education and clean drinking water,
and to promoting women’s autonomy. She has launched ‘Zam-Ké’ – ‘Use me again’ –
in Mina, for the recycling of plastic waste.
Nominated for : Being a young, very dynamic woman and opinion
former who carries out socially-based business activities. Aimée is beginning
to be known on an international level.
Her dream for women: "I hope that we’ll escape from
this minority category in which we have to defend ourselves every day, because
in my country, for example, women have always been the most combative.
 |
| Adonis Koffi - RCI |
Born 9 June
1966, Andonis is a Professor of paediatrics based Abidjan II
Plateaux. She has been involved in the
battle against renal failure in children for seven years and has created the
first specialised unit in the French-speaking sub-Saharan Africans. Combative
and generous, she dreams of a world in which children are free of this illness.
Nominated for being
a great lady who deserves support in order to help the children who embody
future generations. She is very sociable and has an open mind and team spirit.
Her dream for women: A
world in which a bit more time is given to women to have their say in the
management of political matters, to achieve a little more peace in the world.
 |
| Monique Kotchofa Faihun - Benin |
Born 4 May 1961, Monique is a Bailiff lives in Cotonou, a combative woman with strong human relationship skills. She has a strong will,
loves work that is well-done and has dedicated herself to noble causes. Her
dream is for women all over the world to succeed in fully achieving their
dreams.
Nominated for: Her career
path. It is not always easy for a woman to climb the career ladder in the very
macho world of the justice system.
Her dream for women: For
all women in the world to become aware of their real potential and to assert
themselves as leaders in economic, social and political life. Her dream is for
women everywhere in the world not
  |
| Eugenia
Mawuena Adjoa Tachie-Menson- GHANA | |
Born
5
February 1973.Eugenia is Social
Entrepreneur. based in Accra, Ghana
with a love for children and education. Her charity, the Young Educators
Foundation, runs educational programmes for children including the Scripps
Spelling Bee which Eugenia brought to Ghana.
Nominated for Her
love for children and her commitment to improving the education of Ghanaian
children.
Her dream for women is That
the world will acknowledge and accept the role of women as nurturers of
generations, including as world leaders, and will therefore accept that
women must be empowered (educationally) in order for a society to be
considered as successful.
 |
| Patience Barandenge - DRC |
Born
24
August 1979, Patience is the National officer for the market of women entrepreneurs
who lives in Ngaliema. She owes her success to her rich and varied
personal career path. Her dream is that every young girl should have the right
to be an independent entrepreneur. She perfectly combines the life of a single
mother with her passion in running a group of women entrepreneurs.
Nominated for: Being a determined and combative
woman, whose career proves that it is possible to move from one sector to
another. Nothing in life happens by chance. Young and committed, she is a huge
help to a great many women who, without even appearing to do so, make
a major contribution to our country’s economy.
Her dream for women: Independent
entrepreneurship for all young girls! Any young woman who leaves university and
wants to set up her own company must be able to do so, whatever activity is
involved.
Congratulations to our leading women!!!
